Tom has completed sixteen hand-drawn animated films since 1990. IMDb
His films have been broadcast on Independent Lens, the Sundance Channel, Canal + France and Spain, SBS in Australia , CBC in Canada and Pacific Voice in Japan. The films have also played widely on the international festival circuit, including multiple screenings at Annecy, Rotterdam, Sundance, Ottawa and South by Southwest, and have won over forty festival awards. Retrospective programs of Tom’s animated shorts have screened recently in Seoul, Minneapolis and Melbourne.
MN State Arts Board Grant: 1991, 1999, 2006, 2014, 2019
Jerome Film and Video Grant: 2000, 2004
McKnight Fellowship in Media Arts: 2006, 2011, 2015, 2022
Bush Fellowship: 1997, 2008
Rooftop Filmmakers Grant: 2013
Tom has directed commercials for Kashi, Samsung and Hertz Car Rental and is currently represented as a director by Global Mechanic, Vancouver, Canada.
Magnetfilm, Berlin, Germany distributes some of the films.
Tom taught at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design for 25 years and received Professor Emeritus status in 2021.